Genitourinary Cancer

This study will investigate the effects of atezolizumab on select cancer types in people whose analysis of tumour DNA and RNA indicates they may be sensitive to atezolizumab. This study aims to determine if the information from the cancer genome analysis corresponds with the effects of atezolizumab on individuals and their cancer. This is a Phase 2 study, which is undertaken after preliminary safety testing on a drug is completed, and will involve approximately 50 participants. Participants are assigned to one of 3 cohorts based on their primary tumour type: gastrointestinal (GI), sarcoma, and 'other' cancer types. Participants in all cohorts will receive the same dose of atezolizumab (1200 mg every 3 weeks). Participants continue on treatment until they no longer may benefit from the treatment or they decide to stop treatment.

This study will collect, annotate, and sequence biospecimens (blood, tissue, urine, saliva and surgery drainage) from patients across different cancer types to detect molecular residual disease (MRD). Imaging scans and clinical data will also be gathered. This will allow for early cancer interception, and hopefully prolong relapse-free survival across tumor types. Results of ctDNA testing will be provided for clinical decisions and to determine eligibility for other linked interventional interception therapeutic studies, each of which will have a separate protocol.

Background: Tumors in the genitourinary tracts can occur in the kidney, bladder, prostate, and testicles and can have common and rare histologies. Some cancers that occur along the genitourinary (GU) tract are rare. Some GU tumors are so rare that they are not included in treatment studies or tissue banks. This makes it hard for researchers to determine standards of care. Researchers want to learn more about common and rare GU tumors. Objective: To learn more about urinary tract cancers. Eligibility: People ages 18 and older with urinary tract or GU cancer such as bladder, kidney, testicular, prostate, penis, or neuroendocrine cancer. Design: Participants will be screened with questions about their medical history. Their medical records will be reviewed. Participants will have a physical exam. They will give blood and urine samples. They will complete a survey about their family cancer history. Clinical photographs will be taken to document skin lesions. Participants may have imaging scans of their chest, abdomen, and pelvis. They may have a contrast agent injected into their arm. Participants will get recommendations about how to best manage and treat their cancer. They can ask as many questions as they would like. Participants will provide existing tumor samples if available. They may have optional tumor biopsies up to twice a year. For needle biopsies, the biopsy area will be numbed and they will get a sedative. A needle will be inserted through their skin to collect a tumor sample. For skin biopsies, their skin will be numbed. A small circle of skin will be removed. Some blood and tumor samples may be used for genetic tests. Participants will have frequent follow-up visits. If they cannot visit NIH, their home doctor will be contacted. They will be followed on this study for life....

The main purpose of this research study is to determine the amount of opioids that are taken after discharge following a cystectomy, nephrectomy (partial or total), or prostatectomy surgeries via a 30-day post- discharge opioid use and disposal survey. We will also evaluate the impact of an opioid disposal education pamphlet on proper disposal of unused opioids.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) (also called "immunotherapy") are an effective family of anti-cancer drugs, but they can cause serious side effects. Some evidence suggests these side effects might happen because ICIs interact with other drugs that you may already be taking, making those drugs work differently, or causing more side effects. The purpose of this study is to see whether ICIs impact how the liver processes other drugs. To do this, participants will be given a probe cocktail of 7 different FDA-approved drugs that are processed in different ways in the liver.

This is a phase 2a, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled pilot clinical trial determining the impact of riluzole therapy on circulating brain derived neuropathic factor (BDNF) levels in cancer survivors (recently completing prior treatment regimens) or patients who have received whole brain radiation for benign or malignant tumors with cancer related cognitive impairment.

Substantial progress has been made in the treatment of cancer through the use of targeted therapies, but what works for one patient might not work for another patient. Certain drugs are now being developed that target specific molecules in the body that are believed to be part of the disease. Biomarkers are specific characteristics of the cancer that may help provide prognostic information (e.g. how well patients will be regardless of the treatments given) or help predict sensitivity or resistance to a specific treatment. The study will collect archival tumor samples (previously collected biopsy or surgical tumor samples) to provide biomarker data about a patient's cancer, which may help their physicians to identify which clinical trials of new drug treatments may be most appropriate for the patient in the future and may also guide the use of approved treatments that may potentially benefit the patient. Another goal of this study is to develop a province-wide registry of targeted gene sequencing testing results that will be made available to cancer researchers. Additional tumour tissue and blood samples collected from all study participants will also be stored in a biobank at the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research for future research. The study will also look at linking data from this study to other health care databases to further collect information about the health care the patients received, including medical tests, clinic visits, or procedures both before and after participating in this study. Having more information about patient health to relate to the DNA sequences may provide new insights into cancer and its treatment.

This is a phase II single-arm, Phase 2a, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled pilot clinical trial determining efficacy of riluzole in preventing cognitive dysfunction in subjects with cancer, who are receiving chemotherapy.

Earlier detection of disease recurrence will enable greater treatment options and has strong potential to improve patient outcomes. This project is translational and has the potential to lead to future translational research opportunities, including interventional trials in which therapeutic escalation is offered at the early circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) molecular residual disease (MRD) detection timepoint. Ultimately, the integration of ctDNA into the clinical workflow has the potential to enhance cancer diagnosis, treatment, surveillance, and prognosis, and guide clinical decision-making in this era of personalized precision medicine.

These are patients in whom a benign or malignant tumor was recorded requiring surgery. During that surgery, the surgeon will cut away the tumor as part of the treatment of the disease. In this process, it is important that the tumor is removed correctly and completely. To verify that the correct tissue was completely removed, the tissue is examined microscopically. However, a microscopic analysis takes a relatively long time and the result is not known until a few days after the surgery is completed. If that microscopic analysis should eventually reveal that the tumor was not completely removed, additional treatment is usually necessary. An assessment of the excised tissue during surgery would allow additional tissue to be excised in the same operation if necessary. Thus, in this way, additional treatments can also be avoided. This could lead to shorter treatment time and less emotional strain for the patient, as well as lower costs. To date, however, there are no effective techniques to do this. PositronEmissionTomography (PET) imaging can be used to image the tumor that needs to be excised. To do this, a tracer must be administered through the blood before the operation. This tracer is a slightly radioactive substance that can be detected by the PET camera even at low concentrations. This technique is already routinely used in the hospital to detect cancer or inflammatory tissue in the body. During this study, however, it's not the intention to look at the tumor while it is still in the patient's body, but rather after it has been cut out of the patient's body by the surgeon. To do this, the piece of tissue cut away will be scanned using a specially designed PET-CT scanner. The overall goal of this study is to gain additional knowledge. More specifically, the investigators wish to determine which medical conditions may benefit from high-resolution PET-CT specimen imaging.

Studies have shown that tumors from the same patient may respond very differently to the same therapeutic agents. This study aims to investigate the genetic basis of tumors that respond abnormally well or poorly to therapeutic agents in an effort to understand the fundamental genetic basis of this response. The present protocol seeks to retrospectively perform Exome, next-generation (DNA) sequencing and/or other molecular techniques on tumor samples to identify the genetic basis of a patient's exceptional response to chemotherapy.